"Parish Pastoral Councils provide direction for carrying out the mission of each particular community. The Parish Pastoral Council is a sign to all people that the community has responsibility, is called to minister in the Church and that each person's opinions and efforts are valued and vital. The Parish Pastoral Council respects the authority and leadership of the priest, while creating an opportunity for the people of the community to be involved. When there is appreciation for the role of the priest as well as the role of the laity, then we truly become Church, the reign of God." --Bishop Joseph Imesch, Bishop emeritus of Joliet, in his cover letter ofPastoral Council Handbook, Version 4, 2006.

from Section I: The Parish and Its MissionSection Overview: Although each parish has its own unique mission, based on its population, location and sense of ministry, there is a shared universal call. Parishes are called to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. Parishes today understand that evangelization must be an important focus. Sunday Eucharist is the gathering point, where evangelization is lived through worship, word, service, and community. Lay leadership and responsible stewardship are integral to the parish.

Inclusive of their diversity, all parishes share in the same mission, that is, to live out the Gospel message. They live the Gospel within their diversity, whether they are in the hub of a commercial district, manufacturing district or the farmlands, whether they speak multiple languages or only one, and whether they are first-generation Americans or fourth-generation Americans. The parish is part of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church. The Joliet Diocese recognizes seven dynamic elements of parish life. They are:
worship, word, community, service, stewardship, leadership, evangelization. These key pastoral elements are described in canons 528-530 of Canon Law. They function as every parish's calling and interrelate as the parish works to fulfill its mission.

from Section 3: The Parish Pastoral Council Section Overview: The parish pastoral Council, in collaboration with the pastor, assumes the overall well-being of the parish, present and future.
Its primary work is strategic pastoral planning;
its secondary work is consultative, proposing practical solutions to the ongoing life of the parish. Members of the council are individuals with talent in planning and designing parish mission, vision and goals. They are individuals who are committed to the parish as a whole, are willing to serve for three years, are able to attend council meetings and can work collaboratively with each other and the pastor. The parish pastoral council is accountable to multiple groups and fulfills its function by being responsible to the parish community, the pastor, the Bishop, the Diocesan Pastoral Council, the Office of Ministry Formation and itself.

A parish pastoral council
safeguards and promotes the unity of the parish community. The council is the overarching and unifying structure of the parish. It leads the parish in creating focus and establishing direction. The council works with the entire parish community to create a vision for the future, to identify a clear mission and develop long- and short-term goals. It is responsible to see that the mission of the parish is lived and that the elements of parish life are supported. As a group of Christian leaders, the council is a witness to the parish that diverse beliefs, values and expectations can be pulled together and when needed, barriers can be removed. The council models Christianity-in-action, strives to be a faith-filled community and is caring and responsive to itself as well as to the parish at large.

Visioning is the primary work of the council. Visioning, as defined in and through the work of the council, is to focus on the future: how can our parish function, grow and develop so that it is a continued empowerment of lived faith, living out our mission to make and nurture disciples? Visioning takes effort and its principle outcome is the development and management of a parish's strategic pastoral plan. Unlike the pastor and parish staff, the council is not involved in the day-to-day work, but instead takes a step back from the daily bustle to assess the parish's current status and to plan for its future state.

In its advising, consultative capacity, a council may be asked to provide insight into parish issues, related or unrelated to the strategic pastoral plan. The pastor may seek counsel on sensitive issues that impact the parish.... Both pastor and council monitor council work so that more time and energy is placed on the primary council work and not on secondary issues.